Montgomery County 911 dispatch center working to fight burnout, staffing issues
EAGLEVILLE, Pa. – Officials at the Montgomery County Emergency Communications Operations Center said Wednesday they are working to fight staffing shortages and avoid burnout in dispatchers after a recent nationwide survey found mental health challenges for many workers.
"A lot of stress, and sometimes a little frazzled," Craig Michelbacher said he feels this when getting back-to-back 911 calls at the Montgomery County Emergency Communications Operations Center.
A recent survey by the National Emergency Number Association found 74% of operators and supervisors report staff burnout, anxiety, and fatigue at their call centers. Michelbacher said constantly changing technology both helps and hurts.
"We have so much more to remember, now. We do so many different things," Michelbacher said. "We can get alarm calls now via text message, so we don't even have to talk to anybody."
Still, his colleague Amanda Rosentreter said the center needs more operators.
"It would definitely help with call volume, that we're not as stressed out. We're sometimes doing the job of two dispatchers, and it makes for a long day," Rosentreter said.
Assistant Director Kevin Rairdon said the county cannot find enough applicants with basic map-reading and typing skills.
"We are no different in terms of staffing, our staffing levels, which in turn quickly can burn our telecommunicators out," he explained. "In 2022, we answered just under 700,000 total calls, equates to right under 60,000 calls per month. With those shorter numbers of telecommunicators to answer their calls, they in turn are answering more of them. Last year, they may have answered 75 total calls a shift. Now, they are answering 100 – 125 a shift."
Wednesday, the center was training more dispatchers in new technology.
Also, Rairdon said available mental-health services for Montgomery County dispatchers help avoid the life-threatening wait times seen in other centers.
"We are not there now. We hope to not get there at any point," Rairdon said.
Officials said Montgomery County launched a study of salaries to attract new operators and ways to keep the operators they have. That study should wrap by the end of 2023.
